“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” - St. Augustine

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Flip Flops in January

Well I have officially completed week 3 in Liberia! I have not had a melt down yet and I found a clean place where I can get a pedicure so all is good. We spend most of our time at work and then I come home and cook for my 3 husbands but we do get to have some fun. Last Saturday after the morning grocery store trip with Tiffany and Sarah and lunch at the Mamba Point Hotel with the boys which is now our Saturday thing. I really enjoy getting to eat lunch with Dan so it works for me. After lunch Tiffany, Sarah, Elliston, and Cora went to Kendeja which is a resort owned by Bob Johnson who also owns Black Entertainment Television (BET). It was like stepping outside of Liberia and into the U.S.A. It had a great pool and while at the pool you had a lovely view of the ocean. It is like a little piece of Liberian heaven. You can order food and drinks and have them brought to your table which is around the pool and they have lounge chairs also to lay in. After that we had grilled chicken wings at home and Paul had invited some of his workers over to join us. They brought Magic Sing Karaoke which turned out to be SO much fun! All you have to do is plug it in and is has everything you need in the microphone. We sang and had a great time. We also did some Rock Band and were pretty good! On Sunday we had our usual breakfast and are trying to find the perfect sausage seasoning recipe. We tried one but it just wasn't right. We can get ground pork here but have to find the right blend of spices. With our attempt we did have some VERY good homemade biscuits and sausage gravy. Monday started the work week and the beginning of after school activities. I have started teaching a ballroom dancing class to 3rd-9th graders. It is a lot of fun and a little break to have some fun with the kids. On Thursday after school I went with Cora (A girl from Tennessee who teaches Social Studies and is one of my new friends) to get a pedicure and it was wonderful! You can get your toes done with OPI nail polish and order an adult beverage. What a great way to relax after a crazy day at school. That night we went to The Royal Hotel for dinner and had some FABULOUS sushi. Friday was Dan's birthday and I made him a cheesecake. it was pretty good but my pan was so big and I put too much butter in the crust so it was kind of Liberian style because it was a work in progress. We went to eat a Sage which is a great outdoor restaurant and had dinner. I got Dan 2 movies from the little guy in front of the grocery store they are great. You can buy one disc with about 10 to 15 movies on it. I got 2 discs and they had Avitar, Blind Side, The Princess and the Frog, Invictius, Where the Wild Things Are, and Halloween 2. It is a great selection. Tonight we are going to The Garden for Chinese Food which is SO good. I did get him something for tonight which I think he will like, we will have to see. Today we have 2 visitors staying in the compound. They are 2 American teachers who are here doing work at a school. They are teaching here for a year at the Ricks School. One is from Birmingham and the other from Tampa. They have come to stay for the weekend and will join us for dinner. We have spent the day grocery shopping, eating lunch at Mamba Point, and are watching the Proposal. All in all it has been a great week and great day. Tomorrow we are going to Robertsport to the beach and can't wait!

About Me

I am a small town girl who grew up in Modesto, California. I moved to Ozark Alabama right out of high school to live with my Dad and his amazing wife Dottie helped me be the person I am today. I graduated from Troy University with a Bachelors Degree in Collaborative Education in 2005 and now have a Masters Degree in Collaboration from University of Alabama at Birmingham. I currently teach Special Education and LOVE my job, but not as much as my husband Dan. I met him in my second year of college through a mutual friend and hung around the same group of friends until he left for Auburn University in 2002. We didn’t begin dating until August 2004 and have been happy together ever since. He is definitely the calm to my crazy since July 15, 2006 when we got married and he had never has had a dull day since. We have lived in Trussville Alabama for the past 3 years and now have been offered a life changing opportunity to move to Monrovia, Liberia which is in northwest Africa. We took it and are going on a wing and a prayer. Through all my experiences I have learned what doesn’t kill us will only make us stronger.